The constant human industrialization and urbanization of mainly based especially on fossil fuels resulted in intense transformations and consequential environmental impact. In spite of the intense transformations caused mainly by the use of fossil fuels, their substitution by other fuels has been slow, since hydrocarbons are still the majority energy source; as the World Petroleum Industry has become the largest industry in the world today due to, among other factors, constant improvement and technological evolution in the sector.
The exploration of hydrocarbons can take place offshore, type of exploration that occurs far from the coast, in maritime environment; or onshore, type of exploration in terrestrial environments. Both types have their environmental advantages and risks, including the spill of these hydrocarbons in the environment from which they are being exploited.
Oil spills into the environment leave traces of degradation that most of the time could have been avoided. They reach animals, plants and humans, with minimal possibilities of effective recovery of some specimens hit due to the permanence of the toxic substances in the ecosystems. Unfortunately, such environmental disasters are more common than they should be; in order to try to minimize the negative impacts caused by them, some solutions are used after the spill/leak, being the use of microorganisms capable of degrading hydrocarbons and/or chemical/organic absorbing substances, which despite not fully and instantly repair the ecosystem, minimize the impact and enable it to recover gradually by removing the degrading agent.
In the current state of the art, there are certain patent documents referring to production methods and/or absorbent products with the ability to draw hydrocarbons, the current state of the art has a diverse literature on the subject but, in general, refers to the production of absorbent “sachets” or to products which are used for the absorption of offshore hydrocarbons, that is, in aquatic and marine environments.
BR102012033306-6, entitled “Composite Preparation Method for Oil Absorption and Adsorption, Product and Use”, comprises the association of polystyrene (PS) superhydrophobic nanomembranes with expanded exfoliated graphite in spiraled or milled form. The proposed nanomembranes have multiple function because they are hydrophobic, provide a medium for the adsorption of hydrocarbons, especially the petroleum, in addition, to provide a means of containment of the spiralized expanded graphite. In order to contain the spiralized expanded graphite, the super-hydrophobic polystyrene nanomembranes may also be deposited previously in cotton fibers, in the form of twill-like or fabric weave. Nanomembranes optimize the oil absorption capacity of the exfoliated graphite due to the high affinity for oil and do not absorb water from the medium. Furthermore, it is possible to associate PS super-hydrophobic nanomembranes in cotton fabrics to create the graphite containment medium. Said document proposes an oil absorbent composite, comprised of polystyrene and graphite, for absorption in marine environments, the present proposal in this patent application discloses the use of vegetable fiber prepared for hydrocarbon absorption in general in terrestrial environments.
Document BR102012031354-5, entitled “Method for obtaining hydrophobic fibers absorbing hydrocarbons and oils” refers to a method of production and the product obtained of hydrophobic absorbent fibers of hydrocarbons and oils, used to absorb oils and hydrocarbons, coming especially unconstrained from accidentally spilled oil in various aqueous environments, obtained through a specific method with natural feedstock, which prevents the production of a waste, and improves containment in the collection of spills. The absorbent product and its production method are based on the reincorporation to the market of a product made from organic fibers derived from bovine, equine or goat leather which, through a chemical and mechanical method, is denatured. As a result of this denaturation and with due chemical and physical processings, the fibers behave as an efficient hydrocarbon-absorbent product, which results in the purification of contaminated water from these chemical agents. In addition, this product proves to be a powerful absorber of oils and their oily derivatives of all type, mineral or vegetable ones, as well as of the toxic mineral oils of the electrical transformers. Said document proposes a product based on organic fibers, as well as the present patent application, but uses fibers of animal origin, which has been avoided a lot by the market, for reasons of protection and right of the animals.
In view of the above, it is observed that the proposal of a hydrocarbon absorber composed of vegetable fibers from cultivation and also agro-industrial waste completely meets the demand of a market concerned with environmental issues, besides solving environmental problems arising from spills/leakage of hydrocarbons in terrestrial soils.